If You've Ever Wondered What A $1.5 Million Wedding Dress Looks Like

A close-up of the diamond bodice. Photo: Courtesy of Walid Atallah

The average cost of a wedding these days is around $25,000. But you could also spend that much on a few orchids, or three place settings, or one earring. You know, if subtlety isn’t really your thing. Count Egyptian actress Somaya al-Khashab among the latter. She wore one of the world’s most expensive wedding dresses during a fashion show in Oman recently.

The dress, created by Lebanese designer Walid Atallah, is made of silk faille and tulle with a modified strapless sweetheart neckline, The bodice is embellished with pearls and real diamonds framed in a floral pattern, which continues its cascade down all the way down the voluminous skirt. “A wedding dress is more than just a dress, it symbolizes the untouchable purity of a princess and the regal perfection of a queen,” Atallah wrote in an email to Yahoo Style. “Every bride deserves to get her princess fantasy representation met on her very special day and in a modern world where weddings have become more than just a parade each bride wants to exude the impression of an otherworldly goddess" Check, check, and check.

Somaya al-Khashab in the dress. Photo: Courtesy of Walid Atallah

Atallah clearly believes that more is more. “What better day than her wedding to be coroneted as a queen with diamonds sparks?” he asks, recognizing that the gem “symbolizes the transition between the princess she was yesterday and the queen she is today, celebrating her steps with full blossoms and power to her womanhood.” He also added that women are our sisters, mothers, wives, friends, lovers and daughters and said that when a woman wears a diamond, she’s wearing a “link to ancient history,” creating a “valuable partnership with the miners who toil night and day.” (Some might take issue with just what kind of partnership exists between a miner and the woman who wears his diamonds…) But, most importantly, he noted that a diamond on a woman is a “sign that she is loved, cherished and eternalized, because long after she’s gone, the diamond she once wore will live forever.”

The world’s most expensive dress, according to the Guinness Book of World Records. 

Called the “200 C world’s most expensive dress” by Atallah, the dress is valued at $1.5 million. His claim, however, is unfounded. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, jeweler Martin Katz and dressmaker Renee Strauss hold the title for most expensive dress ever made. Their gown, which was created for the Luxury Brands Lifestyle Bridal Show in 2006, is covered in 150 carats worth of diamonds and costs $12 million. In second places is a dress made by Japanese designer Yumi Katsura in 2006 that’s worth $8.5 million; it’s covered in an 8.8 carat green diamond, 1,000 pearls, and a rare 5 carat white gold diamond. And the Atallah dress has to share bronze with a $1.5 million Vera Wang gown. It was reportedly custom made for Jennifer Lopez before her marriage to Ben Affleck (which obviously didn’t happen), and is covered in 2,009 male peacock feathers.

This Vera Wang gown reportedly took two months to create. Photo: REX

Poor Attalah. This is his second attempt at breaking the record. He whipped up a gown of emeralds and diamonds in 2003 but was dethroned by even more extravagant pieces including Kate Middleton’s Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen wedding gown ($400,000) and Kim Kardashian’s Ricardo Tisci for Givenchy ($400,000) among them. Better luck next time!

More from Yahoo Style:
Kate Middleton’s Favorite Dress Designer, Jenny Packham, Created a Magical Bridal Collection
Oscar de la Renta’s Peter Copping On His First Bridal Collection & The Importance of Bustiers
4 Real Brides Try Alternative Wedding Looks: Jumpsuits, Two-pieces & Culottes!